(415a) A Pharmaceutical Industry – University Research Collaboration Via a Post-Doctoral Researcher: the Industrial Perspective

A research collaboration to study rotary spray congealing of suspensions was executed between a department of chemical engineering and a pharmaceutical manufacturer. A post-doctoral researcher was hired specifically for this assignment. Because the university and the company were several hundred miles apart, the researcher alternated working 3-5 month sessions at each of the two sites. From the company's perspective, the collaboration provided access to a high-quality researcher who generated a large amount of data from well-designed experiments, as well as the study of the physics of the system from a solid theoretical perspective. The challenges encountered included incomplete harmonization between the objectives of the industrial and academic sponsors, logistical issues related to the researcher needing to alternate between sites, and the work not being brought to closure by the end of the 18-month collaboration.